Chilean High School students Cristóbal Silva San Martín, student at Colegio Gran Bretaña of Hualpén, in the city of Concepción, and María Josefina Jorquera Faúndez, student at the Windsor School in Valdivia, have been selected by the U.S. Embassy in Santiago, Chile, to attend the 2014 National Youth Science Camp held in West Virginia between June 27th and July 20th.
The National Youth Science Camp (NYSC), held in the Monongahela National Forest, is a well-known educational program that brings together outstanding students from the United States and 20 other countries that have excelled in their involvement in scientific activities. The camp’s purpose is to stimulate the passion for research and studies in environmental science, technology, and mathematics. The program is an enriching educational experience that offers activities including conferences, courses, field workshops, and discussions with experts from different fields. The camp is entirely carried out in English and includes innovative and extensive outdoor activities as well as the opportunity to share ideas among different nations’ youths, allowing students to establish a permanent link amongst others with similar interests.
The two Chilean students were selected based on their academic merit and because they also demonstrated a key interest in science and leadership potential in addition to knowledge of the English language. They were selected from, hundreds of applicants who responded to the call made by the U.S. Embassy this past March.
This will be the sixth year that young Chileans will be attending the prestigious National Youth Science Camp sponsored by the United States Department of State.
The NYSC was established by the state of West Virginia in 1963 and is currently funded by the United States National Youth Science Foundation. The program is held at Camp Pocahontas near Bartow in the eastern mountains of West Virginia’s Potomac Highlands. Last year Nicolás Riquelme of Santiago, Pablo Ignacio Bastías of Valdivia, Carla Francisca Aranguiz, of Concepción, and Nicolás Marinkovic, of Punta Arenas were the Chilean participants.
More information regarding the NYSC can be found on the organization’s website. www.nys.org
